1. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 8906 Reseda Blvd on the back (east) wall of Collective Lifestyle in the parking alley in Northridge. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

2. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 6454 Lankershim Blvd in North Hollywood on the side (north) wall of Vorouj Appliances facing Hamlin St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

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3. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 5745 Tujunga Ave in North Hollywood on the front wall wall of A&S Liquors store. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

4. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 4420 W Victory Blvd in Burbank on the side (west) wall of Nelson’s Liquor facing N. Clybourn Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

5. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 174 W Verdugo Ave. in Burbank on the west (side) wall of an unmarked building. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

6. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 2200 N Soto Street in Los Angeles on the south (side) wall of The Village Mart. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

7. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at at 4949 District Blvd. in Vernon on the South wall of Tipsy Inc. facing District Blvd. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

8. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 3429 Union Pacific Ave. in Los Angeles on the west (side) wall of GoPar Auto Repair. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

9. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 3007 E 4th St. in Los Angeles on the east (side) wall of Boyle Heights Kutz barber shop. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

10. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1430 East Cesar E Chavez Avenue in Los Angeles on the east (side) wall of Liz Beauty Salon facing Warren St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

11. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 800 E 4th St. in Los Angeles on the north wall of The Container Yard facing E. 4th St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

12. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1734 E Washington Blvd in Los Angeles on the east wall of an unmarked building. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

13. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 2101 San Pedro St. in Los Angeles on the north wall of the building facing E. 21st St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

14. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1361 S Main St. in Los Angeles on the south wall of Jimmy Jam T-shirts facing W. 14th St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

15. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1318 S Figueroa St. in Los Angeles on the back wall in the alley behind Valet Parking Service facing the convention center.
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

16. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 400 W Pico Blvd in Los Angeles on the east wall of Hard Core Fitness facing S. Grand Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

17. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 709 Olive Unit A in Los Angeles on the wall of the lounge inside Higher Livin Smoke Shop. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

18. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 2377 W Pico Blvd. in Los Angeles on the south wall of the 7-Eleven facing W. Pico Blvd.
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

19. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 13515 Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

20. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1600 Argyle Ave in Los Angeles on the south wall of The Argyle, facing Selma Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

21. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 11459 Ventura Blvd in Studio City on the south wall of VEM Exotic Rentals facing Ventura Blvd. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

22. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 8495 Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood on the east wall of The Pink Dot, facing the side parking lot. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

23. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7829 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles on the front wall of Sorella Boutique facing Melrose Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

24. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7767 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles on the west wall of Sportie LA in parking lot. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

25. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7768 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

26. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7753 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

27. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7725 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles on west wall of Shoe Palace facing North Genesee Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

28. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 7701 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles on the east wall of World of Vintage T-Shirts facing N. Spaulding Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

29. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 100 N La Brea Ave. in Los Angeles on the south wall of Custom Auto Craft facing W 1st. St. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

30. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 519 S Fairfax Ave in Los Angeles on the front wall of building facing S. Fairfax Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

31. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1251 South La Brea Ave in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

36. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 490 N Beverly Dr. in Beverly Hills on the north wall of Alfred Coffee Beverly Hills building facing Santa Monica Blvd. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

37. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 12430 Washington Blvd. in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

38. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at the Ocean Front Walk in Venice near Windward Ave. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

39. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 10 Washington Blvd in Venice.
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

40. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1005 W Century Blvd. in Los Angeles. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

41. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1511 E 103rd St. in Los Angeles
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

42. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1053 Aviation Blvd. in Manhattan Beach. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

43. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 22505 Crenshaw Blvd. in Torrance. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

44. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 2064 Pacific Coast Hwy in Lomita.
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

45. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 3390 Orange Ave. in Signal Hill. (Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

46. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 1600 Cherry Ave. in Long Beach.
(Photo by Yasmin Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

47. A mural honoring Kobe Bryant can be seen at 219 E 4th St. in Santa Ana. (Photo by Jeff Goertzen, Contributing Photographer)

We started at 5 a.m. on a Tuesday in Northridge and continued the following Sunday, ending in Laguna Beach.

I’m a #GirlDad, so I took my daughter. Yasmin, 21, may not share my passion for basketball, but we share a passion for art. We’re both artists.

The death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven others in a Jan. 26 helicopter crash in Calabasas had a profound effect on not only our family, but we saw firsthand how it affected the Southern California community as we learned of the dozens of murals popping up on building walls throughout the region.

Although our schedules would never permit us to paint a mural together in his honor, we did the next best thing: We visited nearly all of those we learned about, 50 to be exact.

Because of traffic and time, we stayed just a couple minutes at each mural. My daughter navigated with the GPS while I drove.

Finding each mural was like a scavenger hunt. The excitement built as we approached each site looking for the sometimes hard-to-spot prize.

We were amazed, not only with the talent, creativity and emotion expressed in each mural, but also their sizes. One mural measured roughly 1,200 square feet. To fully appreciate such massive and amazing artwork in such limited time was impossible.

But there was a reward. The further we got into our journey, the more we enjoyed the time together to reflect on our relationship and admire the love and bond that Kobe and Gigi had.

As Yasmin appreciated, the murals weren’t just about Kobe.

“They didn’t just focus on his career and how good he was at playing basketball. They also focused on the relationship he had with his daughter,” she said. “At this age, I sometimes forget how lucky I am to have loving parents and to be surrounded by that.”

Each mural told an emotional story. And as a father, the emotions that welled up inside were strong.

The legacy that Kobe left for his children, the deep admiration that Gigi had for her father and the passion they shared together for basketball is an inspiration for any father. The murals captured that.

“People need to stop and appreciate more who they have around them, because you never know when they can be taken away from you,” Yasmin said.

Jeff Goertzen is the art director for Southern California News Group. He was previously the art director for The Denver Post, USA Today and El Mundo (Madrid) and has worked as a visual communications consultant for news agencies in Europe, Asia and Latin America.

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